Amended in Assembly June 15, 2014

Amended in Senate April 7, 2014

Senate BillNo. 1127


Introduced by Senators Torres and Pavley

February 19, 2014


An act to amend Section 8594.10 of the Government Code, relating to emergency services.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 1127, as amended, Torres. Emergency services: individuals with developmental disabilities and cognitive impairments.

Existing law authorizes a law enforcement agency, if a person is reported missing to the law enforcement agency, and that agency determines that certain requirements are met, including, among others, that the missing person is 65 years of age or older, to request the California Highway Patrol to activate a Silver Alert, the notification system designed to issue and coordinate these alerts. Existing law requires the California Highway Patrol to activate a Silver Alert if it concurs with the law enforcement agency that those requirements are met, and to take certain actions, upon activation of a Silver Alert, to assist the agency investigating the disappearance.begin insert Existing law repeals these provisions on January 1, 2016.end insert

This bill would include a missing person who is developmentally disabled or cognitively impaired among the persons who may be the subject of a Silver Alert.begin insert This bill would also delete the repeal date, thereby extending the operation of thend insertbegin insertese provisions indefinitely.end insert

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 8594.10 of the Government Code is
2amended to read:

3

8594.10.  

(a) For purposes of this section, “Silver Alert” means
4a notification system, activated pursuant to subdivision (b),
5designed to issue and coordinate alerts with respect to a person
6who is 65 years of age or older, developmentally disabled, or
7cognitively impaired, and who is reported missing.

8(b) (1) If a person is reported missing to a law enforcement
9agency and that agency determines that the requirements of
10subdivision (c) are met, the agency may request the California
11Highway Patrol to activate a Silver Alert. If the California Highway
12Patrol concurs that the requirements of subdivision (c) are met, it
13shall activate a Silver Alert within the geographical area requested
14by the investigating law enforcement agency.

15(2) Radio, television, and cable and satellite systems are
16encouraged to, but not required to, cooperate with disseminating
17the information contained in a Silver Alert.

18(3) Upon activation of a Silver Alert, the California Highway
19Patrol shall assist the investigating law enforcement agency by
20issuing a be-on-the-lookout alert, an Emergency Digital
21Information Service message, or an electronic flyer.

22(c) A law enforcement agency may request a Silver Alert be
23activated if that agency determines that all of the following
24 conditions are met in regard to the investigation of the missing
25person:

26(1) The missing person is 65 years of age or older,
27developmentally disabled, or cognitively impaired.

28(2) The investigating law enforcement agency has utilized all
29available local resources.

30(3) The law enforcement agency determines that the person has
31gone missing under unexplained or suspicious circumstances.

32(4) The law enforcement agency believes that the person is in
33danger because of age, health, mental or physical disability, or
34environment or weather conditions, that the person is in the
35company of a potentially dangerous person, or that there are other
36factors indicating that the person may be in peril.

37(5) There is information available that, if disseminated to the
38public, could assist in the safe recovery of the missing person.

P3    1(d) For purposes of this section, the following definitions have
2the following meanings:

3(1) “Developmentally disabled” means affected by a
4developmental disability, as defined in subdivision (a) of Section
54512 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

6(2) “Cognitively impaired” means affected by a cognitive
7impairment, as defined in Section 14522.4 of the Welfare and
8Institutions Code.

begin delete

9(e) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2016,
10and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
11is enacted before January 1, 2016, deletes or extends that date.

end delete


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